Donald Trump and Hillary Clinton clash on abortion rights during third and last US presidential debate.
Republican candidate Donald Trump refused to say on Wednesday that he would accept the outcome of the Nov. 8 US presidential election, leaving open the possibility he would challenge the ultimate outcome.
In the third and final presidential debate with Democratic rival Hillary Clinton, Trump said he would wait to decide whether the outcome was legitimate.
"I will tell you at the time, I will keep you in suspense," Trump said.
Clinton responded: "Let’s be clear about what he is saying and what that means: He is denigrating, he is talking down our democracy and I for one am appalled that someone who is the nominee for one of our two major parties would take that position."
In a fiery debate that centered more on policy than did earlier showdowns, Trump accused Clinton's campaign of orchestrating a series of accusations by women who said the businessman made unwanted sexual advances against them.
Trump said all of the stories were "totally false" and suggested Clinton was behind the charges. He called her campaign "sleazy."
"I think they either want fame or her campaign did it, and I think it's her campaign," Trump said.
Clinton said the women came forward after Trump said in the last debate he had never made unwanted advances on women. In a 2005 video, Trump was recorded bragging about groping women against their will.
"Donald thinks belittling women makes him bigger. He goes after their dignity, their self-worth and I don’t think there is a woman anywhere who doesn’t know what that feels like," Clinton said.
"This is a pattern. A pattern of divisiveness, of a very dark and in many ways dangerous vision of our country where he incites violence, where he applauds people who are pushing and pulling and punching at his rallies. That is not who America is," she said.
On abortion
Trump and Clinton clashed on abortion rights. In contrast to the fiery personal attacks of the first two debates, Clinton and Trump had a sharp but issues-based exchange on abortion, gun rights and immigration to start the 90 minute showdown.
Clinton promised to appoint justices who would uphold a woman's right to abortion laid out in the 1973 Roe vs Wade decision, while Trump promised to appoint what he called "pro-life" justices who would overturn the decision.
Under current law, Trump said, "You can take the baby and rip the baby out of the womb of the mother just prior to the birth of the baby."
"Honestly, nobody has business doing what I just said, doing that as late as one or two or three or four days prior to birth," Trump said.
Clinton said Trump's "scare rhetoric is just terribly unfortunate."
"This is one of the worst possible choices that any woman and her family has to make and I do not believe the government should be making it," Clinton said.
NO HANDSHAKE
Clinton and Trump walked straight to their podiums when they were introduced at the University of Nevada, Las Vegas, forgoing the traditional handshake as they did at the second debate last week in St. Louis, Missouri.
Trump seeks to reverse his fading momentum in a U.S. election that opinion polls show is tilting away from him.
The New York businessman, 70, has been damaged by several accusations he groped women - which he denies - and concerns about his claims the election will be rigged against him.
The debate gave Trump, making his first run for elected office, perhaps his best remaining chance to sway the dwindling number of Americans who are still undecided about their vote in the Nov. 8 election.
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